Dancing in the Flames
by Lestat's Violinist
Summary: Someone from Neal's past comes back to haunt him. Let's just say Dragon's aren't only on the scyfy channel anymore.
1. Of Dragons and FBI Agents

**A/N:**_ Don't judge me. I had to write something. I had to. I'm working on new chapters for every story I have up that is not a oneshot, I swear._

**Disclaimer:**_ No, I don't own _White Collar_. Not even a little._

**Warning(s):** _Swearing, violence, possible gore, and somethings I'll probably add later..._

**Summary:** _Someone from Neal's past comes back to haunt him and things begin to get tricky. Let's just say Dragons aren't exactly the work of the scyfy channel anymore._

* * *

><p><em>"I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, <strong>dragons<strong>. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?"_  
>-John Lennon<p>

Neal wasn't quite sure what to think when he spied a far too familiar body perched on his desk. She was pale and slender, with ample breasts and creamy smooth skin. She wore a short, black corseted dress that was lacy and showed off her curves with a pair of black lacy knee high boots that accentuated her legs and rear. Her fiery red hair cascaded over her shoulders and bounced whenever she giggled.

Neal felt his fire rise in his as he watched her flirt with burned him inside even though he knew he had no claim over her. He stalked forward, eyes flashing dangerously, "_Jones_." He regarded the FBI agent with a glare. He pulled Ember to the side so Jones couldn't hear them, "What're you doing here, Ember?" He hissed, "I thought we had an agreement."

She looked at him with her ever changing eyes and just sighed. The way she looked at him made him feel like he'd done something wrong, "I would have stayed away if you were alright."

Neal tried to feign innocence, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Don't try that. I'm in your head, asshole." Ember jabbed Neal's chest nonetoogently. She glared at him harshly, "I know Kate fucked you up and I know I can't help because she's dead but I can't just sit here and let you continue living like this." Neal felt her try to close the bond between them but at the first sensation of pain she stopped. Closing their bond was like trying to cut off your limbs one bit of flesh at a time.

"I'm sorry," Neal sighed, "but you can't do anything to help."

"I know, and I can't do anything to stop it. _It's driving me insane_."

"Why?" Neal asked, not bothering to keep his voice down, "We're not together. It's not like this _thing_ between us is actually real. It was designated to us. You don't have to be here. I don't _want_ you here!" He shouted in her face. She flinched away from him as if he'd slapped her.

"_I know_." She growled, grinding her teeth together, "I know you don't want me here. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't important. There's a Sept meeting coming up and if the Wyvern's find out that we aren't together they'll kill us both, you _**stupid**__ son of a bitch!"_

Neal snarled dangerously, "_You're lying_."

Everyone stared in shock as Ember slapped Neal straight across the face, "I would _never_ lie about this." She hissed, watching the blood trickle down his cheek. His eyes flashed silver and fire bubbled up inside him.

"You need to leave."

"If I do, we die. I'm not leaving." She said, planting her feet firmly on the ground as if readying herself to fight. Like he was going to pick her up and carry her out the door. Which he was. He threw her over his shoulder and started to walk out. She began kicking and screaming, "YOU SON OF A BITCH, YOU PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW!" She screamed, clawing at his back, "PUT ME DOWN!"

Peter came running out of his office and it took him, Diana, and Jones to separate the fighting pair. They were flinging obscenities at each other and trying to get back to killing each other, "What is this?" Peter shouted, holding a struggling Neal back. The FBI agent was sweating from trying to hold the con back. It seemed that Diana was having the same trouble holding back the girl.

"I'M LETTING YOU DO THIS TO ME, NEAL!"

"I'M NOT LETTING YOU CON ME, BITCH!" Neal screamed back.

Ember struggled, flopping around wildly, "THIS IS NOT A CON! IF DRACO FINDS OUT YOU KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN!" That stopped Neal in his tracks. His faced paled and his body trembled slightly.

Neal licked his lips, "Draco?"

"Yeah, and he'll be here next week. I just found out yesterday. Took me that long to locate you and get to you."

Peter frowned, "You found him and got to him in twenty-four hours?" He pouted slightly, letting go of Neal hesitantly. Neal straightened his suit, sighing heavily.

"You and I need to talk." Neal huffed, fixing his hair.

Ember growled, "Damn straight we do." She said, grabbing Neal's arm and dragging him to the elevator. Peter tried to follow but the doors shut before he could hop inside.

Peter faced Diana, "She found him in twenty-four hours?"

* * *

><p>"Draco is coming." Neal stated, not beating around the bush. He pushed the emergency stop and leaned against the wall.<p>

"Yes, and he's going to be pissed if he finds out the Mating he designated hasn't come through with anything." Ember said, making fists.

Neal's eyes widened and he swallowed hard, "You mean a kid."

"Yes."

"How do we get around this?"

Ember shrugged, "Fake a pregnancy and then cry miscarriage."

"Are you _serious_?" Neal gaped.

"What else could we do?" Ember demanded, folding her arms over her chest.

"I don't know. Could we use a friend's kid?" Neal asked hopefully.

Ember sighed, rubbing her eyes, "I don't have any friends that are Dragons, Neal. They're going to demand a Dragon offspring."

"So when he asks why we haven't had one before-?"

"We tell him that we've been having a blast living that we haven't had time to settle down and think about kids." Ember finished for him with a nervous smile, "Now we just have to smile and act like we've been together all these centuries."

Neal let out a long breath and shook his head, "This is gonna suck."

Ember gave a wry chuckle, "Yeah, it is."

* * *

><p><span>So, guys tell me what you think. This is just the first chapter. If you follow my stories then you know the updates come far and few in between. But I do love reviews and they make me want to write more. So, even if it's an unsigned review, please tell me what you think. :)<span>


	2. Your SilverWhite Scales

**A/N:**_ Heyyy, so this is chapter two. Bet'cha didn't guess _that_, huh? Lol. Sorry, it's midnight-thirty here and I'm posting this after working on it all day. Well, I wa working on it when I wasn't at work. Ugh._

**Disclaimer:**_ No, I don't own _White Collar_. Not even a little._

**Warning(s):** _Swearing, violence, possible gore, mentions of rape, and somethings I'll probably add later..._

**Summary:** _Someone from Neal's past comes back to haunt him and things begin to get tricky. Let's just say Dragons aren't exactly the work of the scyfy channel anymore._

* * *

><p>Peter watched the security feed if the elevator and sighed. The bureau should really invest in audio surveillance because whenever Neal didn't want anyone overhearing a conversation he took to the elevators. It seemed that the girl knew that very same trick because she had drug Neal into the hiding spot. It was driving Peter insane.<p>

He couldn't see the girl's lips but he could see Neal's so that meant he was getting half of the conversation. Sadly, that meant he was only getting half the conversation. Peter told himself he wasn't invading Neal's privacy because Neal was a con and con's didn't get privacy but a little part of him was telling him that he was invading his friends privacy.

Peter forced himself to focus. Getting distracted wasn't going to help him figure out who this chick was and why Neal seemed so mad at her. Peter had never seen Neal throw a punch at any female, not even the ones that deserved it. Neal was pale and shaky so whatever that girl had said to him shook him up pretty badly. Peter started writing down questions.

Who was this girl and why was Neal so mad at her?

Who is Draco? (someone from Neal's past, maybe?)

Why were they talking about kids? Why would they need to 'borrow' one from a friend?

What was going on that had Neal so scared?

The next one wasn't really a question- it was more a reminder to himself.

Put in a janitorial request for the elevator cameras. Whenever Neal or the girl got angry the camera went on the fritz.

Somehow Neal managed to distract Peter from asking questions the whole rest of the day. The FBI agent had no idea how the con did it but it was done. He'd ask tomorrow.

* * *

><p>Blood.<p>

Pain.

Tears.

"No, please don't!" Ember begged, throwing her arms out in an attempt to defend herself, "Stop!" She sobbed as she tried to fight the thick arm that was pressing down on her throat. The four Werewolves chuckled darkly. They were enjoying her panic.

"Y'hear that boys?" The largest male snickered, "She said 'please'. I guess we hafta let 'er go now, huh?" He sneered at her and spat in her face as he grabbed her from his pack mate and thrust her against the large tree. A sickening snap echoed from inside Ember and she let out a strangled cry. The Alpha grinned widely, "Ohh, that sounded like a rib. That's gotta hurt."

The other wolves laughed as they bounced impatiently on their feet. They were excited. The stench of their arousal was sour and made Ember gag. The Alpha instructed the others to hold her against the tree as he removed her clothes with his knife. He licked her skin before biting into it and ripping her flesh open, "I am gonna enjoy wrecking you, Dragon." He breathed into her ear before thrusting into her. Ember screamed in agony each time he forced himself back into her. They didn't slow down. Once the Alpha was done he let the others have their turns. Her torture seemed to go on for years. She knew it could only have been a few hours but it seemed like eons.

The Alpha grabbed her face in his meaty grip and forced her to look him in the eyes, "At least you Dragons are good for one thing." He stabbed her in the abdomen three times before he and his pack walked off, leaving Ember beaten and broken a few miles into the forest.

Ember gasped as she jolted awake. She choked on the air as it rubbed her throat raw. She'd been screaming in her sleep, she knew she had been. Her throat was sore and she coughed up bits of blood. She glanced at the clock, trying to distract herself from the memory-dream she'd had. It was barely two in the morning. She knew she wasn't going back to sleep anytime soon so she got dressed and headed outside quickly.

She hugged herself tightly and shivered. It was partly because New York was cold as balls at night and partly because of her nerves. Her silver-white scales glittered in the moonlight. They were sprinkled over her shoulders, back, and arms like beautifully crafted tattoos. She glanced around, trying to decide where to go as she walked. She didn't care where she went so long as she didn't think about what had happened to her.

It didn't work.

She ended up pressing her hand to her abdomen and fighting back tears at Grand Central Station. She was sitting in the corner where no one could really see her. She liked it that way. If she could stay invisible no one could attack her. She cried silently. She cried because she was hurt, she cried because she was alone, but mostly she cried because of what those wolves did to her and what that lead to.

_Infertility._

The Doctor had said it was common among rape victim with wounds as bad as hers. She didn't care. All she was hearing was that she would never have children. She had cried so much that day that she threw up. She didn't eat for five days and she didn't even bother getting dressed. Finally she realized she was at the house the wolves had found her at and she knew she had to leave.

She forced herself to seem normal so if she ran into anyone she knew they wouldn't ask her what happened. She hadn't told anyone what had happened and she didn't plan on doing so anytime soon. She wanted to forget that night but every time she felt like she was actually getting back to normal she had the memory-dream and she dropped back into her depressive state.

It was so hard to act like she was okay when she was anything _but_ okay.

Ember forced herself to stand so she could start walking back to the motel she was staying at. She wiped her eyes and took several deep breaths. She couldn't really see past her tears but she figured she could find her way back anyways. She didn't count on bumping into anyone.

She stumbled backwards and was caught by a firm- yet gentle- grip. She started to make apologies but a far too familiar voice stopped her cold, "Ember? What's wrong?" Neal asked her, helping her get steady on her feet.

She blinked at him, furiously wiping her eyes, "N-nothing. I'm f-fine." She tried to walk away but Neal held her tightly.

"That's bullshit. You're not fine. Come on, you're coming home with me." Neal insisted and they were up in his apartment by the time Ember realized that this wasn't something Neal would normally do.

Ember frowned, "Why are you being so nice to me? I thought you hated me?"

"I'm not completely heartless. No matter what, you're my Mate and I can't let you go on living in the kind of pain you're in."

"Wha-"

"The empathic bond goes both ways, Em." He said gently, reaching out to touch her face.

His hand wasn't big, it wasn't meaty like the wolves but Ember recoiled anyways. Her mind flashed back to that night and she trembled. She whimpered pathetically, her eyes turned black. Her fear shook her to her core and she felt her sanity chip away piece by piece, "Don't hurt me, _please_. I'll do anything." She wasn't seeing Neal anymore, no; she was suddenly with the wolves. They had her and they weren't going to let her go.

Not this time.

* * *

><p>Neal's eyes widened as he slipped into Ember's mind. She was broken and it was his fault. He saw everything she'd been through. He felt what the Werewolves had done to her and he couldn't help the rage that flared through him. Neal's pupils turned to slits as his irises changed to a liquid silver color. Silver white scales sprouted on his arms, shoulders, and back and smoke wafted from his nostrils.<p>

Flame wisps fluttered out from between his lips as he clenched his fists, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Ember whispered as she rocked back and forth. She had her knees tucked up against her chest and she was crying. Neal instantly deflated. Here was his Mate, crying and broken and all he was doing was scaring her even more.

What he did next didn't change his feelings for her, he still hated her but he couldn't just let her stay broken. He scooped her up into his arms and shushed her when she tried to wriggle away. He calmed her down as he sat on the couch with her. They watched mindless TV and Neal felt himself smile when she fell asleep in his arms, clutching his shirt as though it were her lifeline.

No, this didn't change anything.

At all.


End file.
